Ulster boss defends Stockdale after costly error

CHAMPIONS CUP REACTION: Ulster head coach Dan McFarland refused to blame star wing Jacob Stockdale after his fumbled touchdown cost his side dearly in their Champions Cup quarter-final defeat to Leinster.

McFarland said that there was an air of ‘desperate disappointment’ in the Ulster changing room following the defeat.

“There’s a lot of guys in the dressing rooms with their heads down. We felt that we could have won that game,” McFarland told the reporters. “Falling short is desperately disappointing.”

“This, unfortunately for Jacob Stockdale, is unforgivable!”

“He’d done all the hard work, all he had to do was fall!”@BrianODriscoll and @StephenFerris6 weigh in on the moment that shifted the momentum of the whole game…

A cruel, cruel blow for Ulster. pic.twitter.com/851lr4WwkM

— Rugby on BT Sport (@btsportrugby) March 30, 2019

When queried about what ultimately cost his side, a question he felt was a reference to Stockdale’s mishap, McFarland was defiant.

“I know what you want me to say and I’m not going to say it.

“There’s not many people in the world that can beat that many players. I’m proud of Jacob. That’s not the reason we lost the game.

“He’s really, really disappointed. The only reason he’s disappointed is the fact that he could get into that position.

“It’s probably 3mm off his finger. It’s a small thing. Chaos theory will tell you, it could have been any one small thing.”

“Our contact work wasn’t good enough. Leinster stole a few balls off us.”

“We didn’t deserve to win,” although he admitted that: “We took them by surprise with our physicality.”

Secondrow Iain Henderson lamented the Belfast based side’s seeming inability to take their game to the next level.

“We took steps on route to getting to that next level. I’m pretty proud of the guys.

“Ultimately we didn’t take it.”

By Ian Cameron, Rugbypass